Grate shaking and dumping mechanism



Fil3- 3 INVENTOE R.C. Whrlre.

ATTORNEY.

R. 0. WHITE; GRATE SH-AKING AND DUMP'ING MECHANISM.

APPLICATION min uov isglszo.

Patented I 45 I ing of this screw to vary the neutral point shaking lever,

properly limited by stops on GRATE SHAKINGAND DUMIBING MECHANISM.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Dec. 13, 1921- Applicationfiled November 15, 1920. Serial No. 424,313.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ROBERT; C. WHITE, a citizen-of the United States of America, residing at Irondale, in the county of Jefferson and State of Alabama, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Grate Shaking and Dumping Mechanism, of which the following is a specification.

'My invention relates to a mechanism for dumping and shaking furnace grates. In Letters Patent No. 1,228,626, issued to me on June 5th, 1917, for a similar invention, I described and claimed means for limiting the short shaking -movements of the grate lever, a separate means for limiting the longer dumping movements of the lever, and an adjustable means to engage the lever when in neutral position and shift it to maintain the level of the grates. In the use of my said invention it has developed that the independent action of the leveling means, acting to change the neutral point of the lever, has failed to change. the position of the stops and this caused the lever to have an unequal movement to either side from its neutral. position. One feature of my present inventionis to bring the stops and the leveling appliance all into relation for joint movement so that I am enabled to vary the neutral point to level up the grates and at the same time preserve the equal limitedshaking play for the lever in both directions. from its neutral position.

A further feature of myinvention isto utilize a'pair of hinged stops jointlyadjustable adapted to co-act with a lug on the oneto lock the lever in neutral position, the other to limit its shaking movements, and when both are raised the lever is free; for a full dumping movement the fulcrum bracket.

A further object is to mount the two hinged.stops .upon a common adjusting screw so disposed as to enable the adjustofthe lever and level up the grates.

,7 My invention further, comprises thenovel details of construction and arrangements of parts, which in their preferred embodiment only are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side view of my improved shaker with the locking stop out of operating position and the shaking stop in operating position, the lever standing inneutral position.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the device with both stops in operative position.

Fig. 8 is a partial vertical cross sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a detail cross sectional view taken on the line 4-4: of Fig. 2.

Similar reference numerals refer to similar-parts throughout the drawings. 1

As illustrated in the drawings,I show a bracket 1 adapted for attachment to the boiler front 1 and having a horizontal projection 2 carrying at its outer end a hollow segmental guide 3, the top wall a of which is struck on a curve from the pivot bolt 5 at the center ofits lower edge. I. mount on the pivot bolt 5 a lever 6 having its upper end disposed to travel in the hollow guide and provided with a laterally extending lug 7 which projects through and travels in an arcuate: slot 8 in one sidewall of the guide 3. -The upper end of the lever is provided with a socket 9 and travels in spaced relationship tothe under surface of the curved top wall 4 of the guide. This wall 4 is provided with a slot- 10 extending throughout an arc corresponding to the maximum regular movement contemplated for the lever. The overhanging edges of this slot arecut away at the center points to form notches 11 which permit the inser:

tion through the slot at this point only of the lugs '12 near the .lower end 1 1 of the handle which is shaped to fit snugly into, the socket 9; The lugs 12 are of such" thickness as to travel freely the lever and the top wall 4101? the frame. By this arrangement the handle can only be inserted or'removed at its neutral position and yetwhenonce inserted will rock- 'freely through the slot 10 for the full length thereof. By being removable only at its between the top of center or neutral position the grates will be left level or the handle will remain con nected to the shaker mechanism and thus indicate when the apparatus has not been left in proper operating position.

The lower end 15 of the lever is bifurcated to straddle the shaker bar 16 which is attached to the straps 14 which connect the grate sections for shaking. A. pivot bolt 17 connects the lever and shaker bar.

Projecting above and to one side of the bracket extension 2 is a raised boss 18 having an oblong hole 19 for a screw 20, having flattened side faces 21, which is adapted to slide through but not to rotate in said hole. Nuts 22 on each side of the boss hold the screw in adjusted position. At its outer end the screw carries a yoke 23 in which a stop 24 for limiting the shaking movements of the grate is pivotally connected by a bolt 25. This stop is provided on its under face with a notch 26 which normally receives the lug 7 on the lever so as, by engagementof the latter with its end walls, to limit the shaking movements of the grates. A lock stop '27 is pivotally connected to the outer side of the limitstop at by means of a pivot bolt 28, and this stop 27 has a notch 29 which fits snugly about the lug 7 without allowing it any play.

When the lock stop 27 is in engagement with the lug 7, by adjusting the screw 20 the lug can be shifted to level the grates and it is to be noted that the length of the notches 11 is suflicient to take care of the range of adjustment required in this connec tion. Due to the fact that both stops 24 and 27 are adjusted together the neutral position of the lug 7 will always be in the center of the notch 26 and thus wherever the leveling adjustment may leave the parts, the lever will travel an equal distance from each side of its neutral point and thus will rock the grates equally to both sides.

In operation, assuming the lever to be in neutral position with its socket 9 in line with the notches ll of the guide frame, to shake the grates the handle 13 isdropped into position through notches l1 and interlocked with the lever, the lock stop 27 is swung up from operating position as in Fig. l, and the limit stop 2& is riding on the lug 7 The lever is then thrown forward and backward with its strokes limited by the ends of the notch 26 and this movement is imparted through the shaker bar 16 to shake the grates. f it be desired to dump the grates the limit stop 24 is itself swung up to idle position and then the lever can throw the grates the full length of the slot 8 in the guide and dump'them. This slot limits the dumping movement so that the grates cannot be turned over. Having completed the dumping, the stops 24c and 27 are thrown back into engagement with the lug 7 and when the handle is moved to neutral position so that it can be lifted out through the notches 11, thenotch 29 in the lock stop will engage the lug 7 on the lever and lock the grates in level position. If it be found that as thus locked the grates are not truly level the nuts 22 are adjusted until the grate is pulled level and this adjustment does not efiect the operation of any of the parts heretofore described.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a grate shaking mechanism, a pivoted shaking lever having a projection, a notched stop member movable into position to engage said projection to limit the angular movements of said lever, a second mov able stop member movable to engage said projection and hold the lever in neutral position, and a common means to adjust said stop members. V

2. In a grate shaking and dumping mechanism, a pivoted shaking lever having a projection, a fulcrum member for the lever with stops to limit its grate dumping movements, a notched stop movable to engage the projection and limit the shaking movements of the grate, a notched stop'movable to engage the projection and hold the lever in neutral position, and means to adjustably support said stops, said notched stops being sufiicient in length to drop into contact with said projection in all positions of the lever.

3. A grate shaking mechanism comprising a bracket, a shaking lever pivoted on the bracket, a projection on the lever, an adjustable element mounted on the bracket, and

two pivoted notched stop members carried by I said element and having different sized notches which are adapted to receive said projection and limit the movement of said lever, one notch being adapted by contact with the said projection to limit the levers movements to that required to shake the grate, and the other'notch being relatively elongated to permit of a lever movementsufficient to dump the grate;

4. In a grate shaking mechanism,-a shaking lever, a fulcrum therefor, a stop to lock the lever in neutral position, a stop to limit the lever to predetermined shaking movements, and means to adjust said stops together to preserve their relative positions whilevarying the neutral positionof the lever.

5. A grate shaking mechanism comprising a shaking lever, a support therefor, an

adjustable member on the support, a pair shaking movements, substantially as described.

6. A shaking mechanism in accordance with claim 5, in which the adjustable member is a screw flattened so as to slide but'not to turn in the bracket, and set nuts which engage and hold the screw in adjusted positions.

7 A shaker mechanism in accordance with claim l, in which the stop for holding'the lever in neutral position is pivotally mounted on the stop controlling the shaking movements of the lever.

8. A grate shaking mechanism in accordance with claim 4, in which the pivoted stops when swung upwardly will stand in inoperative position.

In testlmony whereof I afiix my signature.

ROBERT 0. WHITE.

Witness NoMIE WELSH. 

